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31/03/2017

Welcome to another brand new series; this month we'll be creating various dishes that only take 30 minutes or less to prep and cook. As we are full time workers and gym enthusiasts, we are always looking for quick and easy (mostly healthy) recipes to make! We hope you enjoy this series and do let us know if you create any of them and what you thought!

Serves: 2 | Prep Time: 5 mins | Cook Time: 15 mins

Ingredients:

- 1 tsp olive oil

- 100g black kale, shredded (£1)

- 2 x 227g tin chopped tomatoes (35p)

- 1/2 tsp ground cumin

- dash Tabasco, plus extra to serve

- pinch sugar

- 2 eggs

- toast, to serve (optional)

Total: £1.35

Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to gas 4, 200°C, fan 180°C. Heat the oil in a frying pan and add the kale with a splash of water. Stir-fry until wilted then stir in the tomatoes, cumin and Tabasco, with a little seasoning and a pinch of sugar. Cook for 3-4 minutes until heated through.

2. Pour your mixture in ovenproof bowl dishes. Make a couple of holes in the mixture and break an egg into each. Pop the pan into the hot oven for 10 minutes, or until the eggs are fully cooked through. Serve with toast, if you like, and a drop or two of extra Tabasco.

29/03/2017

Welcome to another brand new series; this month we'll be creating various dishes that only take 30 minutes or less to prep and cook. As we are full time workers and gym enthusiasts, we are always looking for quick and easy (mostly healthy) recipes to make! We hope you enjoy this series and do let us know if you create any of them and what you thought!

It specifically says to watch the garlic because I managed to burn mine in 1.2 minutes! So be careful for that!Serves: 4 | Prep Time: 12 mins | Cook Time: 10 mins

Ingredients:

- 200g (7oz) medium noodles (£2)

- 4 tbsp tamarind sauce (£1)

- 2 tbsp fish sauce (take out if vegeterian)

- 1 tbsp brown sugar

- 1/2-1 tsp tsp chilli flakes

- 2 tbsp vegetable oil

- 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped

- 2 large eggs, lightly beaten

- 1 x 320g pack vegetable and beansprout stir fry (£1.70)

- 50g (2oz) roasted peanuts, roughly chopped (£1)

- 1 lime, quartered (30p)

Total: £6

Instructions:

1. Heat the vegetable oil in a large frying pan and add the garlic. Cook briefly, watching it doesn’t burn, then add the tamarind, chilli flakes and fish sauce mixture. Let this bubble for a minute, then transfer to a bowl.

2. In the same pan, on medium-high heat, add the beaten eggs. Let them set for a minute, without stirring. Once set, break vigorously with a wooden spoon.

3. Add the stir fry vegetables and cook for 2 minutes, stirring from time to time. Then add the noodles, pour over the sauce, stir well and cook for another minute or two. Serve sprinkled with chopped peanuts and a squeeze of lime.

27/03/2017

Welcome to another brand new series; this month we'll be creating various dishes that only take 30 minutes or less to prep and cook. As we are full time workers and gym enthusiasts, we are always looking for quick and easy (mostly healthy) recipes to make! We hope you enjoy this series and do let us know if you create any of them and what you thought!

This is actually a tad but similar to something we created in our last series, which you can find here but with a few difference, either way both just as tasty! If you're a fan of cod, you'd love this dish!Serves: 4 | Prep Time: 5 mins | Cook Time: 12 mins

1. Preheat oven to 190C and dry the fish on kitchen paper. Brush a non-stick baking tray with a little of the oil and sit the fish fillets on the brushed area.2. In a small non-stick frying pan, fry the de-seeded and chopped yellow pepper over medium heat for 10 minutes until softened and slightly tinged gold, then add the peeled, chopped garlic and stir for a minute. Add the tomatoes (no juice), pesto, saffron and paprika and stir for 2 minutes, then stir in the olive slices and chopped parsley, plus seasoning to taste. Cook for a further minute then spoon the mixture onto the tops of the fish fillets. Bake for 12 minutes or until fish is just cooked through and topping is bubbling.

26/03/2017

Yesterday (25 March 2017) I, Jessica attended Gelato Day at Mercado Metropolitano. Of course both James and I were originally invited, but unfortunately due to it being Mother's Day weekend, James had been away and couldn't attend, but I couldn't let this opportunity pass, so naturally I brought along my trustee fellow blogger, Ashlee Moyo.Mercado Metropolitano is a community-based urban market based in Elephant & Castle with a strong focus on Italian, locally-sourced and socially-conscious products.

We had the option of attending either/both events during this day, one at 4 pm for the masterclass or at 9 pm for the tasting session. We thought we'd opt of the masterclass, as it consisted of two special guest, showing and explaining how to create gelato, as well as being able to taste them.

The two guests were Paolo Pomposi, winner of Gelato Festival 2015, and Giorgio Zanatta, winner of Sherbeth Festival 2016.

During the masterclass Giorgio and Paolo introduced us to the history of gelato and told us what are the secrets to the perfect gelato! Three different freshly made gelato flavours were produced live and we were lucky enough to try them all.

The first flavour was a basic original flavour, La Dolce Vita, which was award winning and the last Colombo. All of which was amazing to see being produced and just simply amazing, every single one, my favourite being.. actually can I just say all of them?

Other than just eating the gelato, we of course learnt the history how gelato came around, as the first gelato ever made was in 1539.

We also learnt the answer to the big question of what's the difference between gelato and ice cream?

How it was told to us is simply gelato is Italian and ice cream is American.

Gelato is more dense and intense, whereas ice cream is more fat and fluffy.

To end this event, there was a quick quiz on all the information we had just taken in exchange for the chance to win vouchers for more gelato in the market.

Sadly, neither Ashlee or I won, which we were honestly gutted about because we so wanted more gelato!

Disclaimer: we were given complimentary tickets to this event, but as always, all opinions and photos are our own

18/03/2017

It's finally the weekend and what better way to kick it off with some Brunch? Especially when it was somewhere we're we've been wanting to go to for so long. After seeing so many Instagram posts at Farm Girl, it has been on our places to visit in London for the longest of time.

As James is actually leaving me for the rest of the weekend to go back to see Olly Murs in concert and stay in Chester, he wanted to treat me with the sweet taste of cake before he left.

Other than the fact of it's popularity, it was of course right in the middle of one of the iconic streets in London, Portobello Road, it was bound to be super busy, so a long wait is what we expected and received. Starting from all the way from the back of the line, just about through the door, we had waited maybe just over an hour.

Madness, I know. Considering that this had been long awaited and for a fact that at any time we would have planned to come, it would most likely be the exact same, we decide to wait it out as we didn't even know when the next chance we'd be able to do this anyway.

james went for their specialty coffee which was their Rose Latte and I obviously went for my favourite, Chai Latte. James for some reason wasn't expecting the rose to be so strong, but nevertheless enjoyed it and I felt my chai latte was not as sweet as usual, as if it was on the lighter side.

There was actually a good choice of brunch dishes on the menu, so you can imagine the struggle. James opted for the baked eggs and as much as I wanted it too, I just couldn't have the same - so I went with my classic love avocado on toast, with a poached egg on the side obviously - get that protein.

Yes I'm a blogger and I like avocados okay. I shan't get into this avocado drama again.

James' dish was a real treat, hot, tasty and full of flavour, paired with freshly toasted bread. It was perfection and if we were ever to go back, I will be sure to get that for myself.

As only have seen instagram pictures taken from outside, the inside isn't what I imagined it to be - nothing bad, just different. Although it would have been so nice to have that 'blogger' shot outside, the weather wasn't that warm to complain we weren't sitting outdoors, but if given the chance in the summer - we'd love to come with some blogger friends.

Almond, Pistachio & Raspberry Cake - £4.95

With plenty of time to spare and of course the with dessert space in the tummy to fill, we of course had to get a slice of cake from the many variety of choices at their counter.

17/03/2017

It's Friday night and I, Jessica, have taken James on date. With all his amazing efforts and surprises for my birthday, I felt it was only right to spoil my love, as well as it just being our 2 years and a half (I know that's not long for some, but wharves)

As James has been full of surprises, so I wanted to keep this one a surprise for him too. Okay, so I know what you're thinking, but you're just at a restaurant. What's so surprising about that?

Well this restaurant from street view, does not look like a restaurant - given the area it is in, you wouldn't think twice seeing this place. With bright lights screaming 'Peep Show' and 'Adult Video' and a sign on the door saying 'Private Dance Downstairs' you would have no idea that there was simply a Mexican restaurant inside - hence keeping it a surprise.

Upon arrival, of course James thought I was joking when we stopped outside and with doubt still on his mind, I opened the door, still confused, we were greeted by a man sitting on a stall in front of shelves full of porn magazines and please note that I'm still in full swing of making James believe this is what it looked like outside. James walks in and says "Baby, what the heck?" and I am crying of laughter inside!

By the time we got downstairs, I told him it was simply a restaurant, as I couldn't hide it any longer. James at this point was still seriously confused and was still waiting for something to happen.

As mentioned previously, this is a Mexican restaurant, so it was completely intentional to get Tequila based cocktails and nibbles. We had secretly eaten at home beforehand, so everything we got we shared together.

The atmosphere was very lively, people in and out for drinks, groups of people on every table, very dim and very loud - as expected to be honest. The service was very efficient and smooth, we were served very quickly and everything was cleared up without question.

The food was so tasty, bursting with flavour in such little plates and all complimented with the taste of the tequila in the cocktails.

Sunflower Tostadas - Guacamole - £5.50

Green Goddess - Avocado, Baby Gem, Tomatoes, Radish and Pecans - £7

Char Roasted Mushroom - Crema Mexicana - £6.50

Braised Beef - Salsa Comal - £6.50

White Chocolate & Raspberry Brûlée - £6.50

Although for the little amount you would get, it would come up very pricing if you was to order enough to fill you, but there is more to the menu I'm sure, but overall a great experience.

We would recommend this place for something a little bit different, special occasion or simply for some drinks with your friends.

As some of you may already know, this past Monday, March 13 marked this years Holi Festival of Colours.

Holi is celebrated every year in the Hindu calendar and marks the Vernal Equinox, in other words, Spring. The Festival of Colours has become a global festival with revellers caking each other from head to toe in powdered paint and taking joy in each other's multi-coloured appearance. It's perhaps one of the most democratic festivals on the planet as formality is stripped away and regardless of creed or status everyone is regarded as fair game. But it's not just the celebration of Spring and waving goodbye to Winter coats it's also a fabulous celebration of food and sweet treats.

In celebration of this festival, we were offered the opportunity to create these delicious Indian dishes ourselves, with the perfect combination, Kingfisher beer. We had also received our very own Holi paint within our package, but from what I believe we won't be celebrating Holi Festival until it's a bit more sunnier over here on July 29 - so I'm sure we'll be making much more use of it then.

Sieve the flours, baking powder, large pinch of salt together and add the carom and cumin seeds and black pepper together. Now add the ghee/butter and water and knead the flour into a firm dough…it shouldn’t be slack or too soft. Tear off plum sized pieces and roll into a ball, then gently flatten them with the ball of your palm and shape them into ½ cm thickness for an organic feel and texture. Alternatively using a floured rolling pin and floured surface, roll out the dough to a ½ cm thickness and use a round biscuit cutter. Using a deep skillet or frying pan heat the oil over a medium heat and fry the mathri until gently tanned. Drain on kitchen paper and serve with a sharp and tangy chutney such as mango.

Although I don't think we did this recipe justice, as we believed we've made them a little bit thicken than asked for, but we plan on re-creating them again in the near future.

As well as receiving this recipe, we had also received the recipe for the photos above, the Malpua Pancakesand another which we hope to make soon, the food of colourGujiya.

We also have yet to make a dessert, Thandai, look out for it on our social media!

Disclaimer: we were sent the recipes and Kingfisher beers, but as always, all photos, views and opinions are our own

15/03/2017

On Saturday we had the fantastic opportunity to try out German Doner Kebab, but before you read this post you'll need to do one thing, and that is to forget everything you already know and think about kebabs. This is different, very different.

The main reason being is that they offer the healthiest kebab out there. In complete opposite ways to the average kebab operator, their meals are nutritionally sound and contain no preservatives or additives. All the ingredients are of the highest quality and exclusive to the GDK restaurants. The meat used is 100% succulent beef and chicken fillets, all vegetables are locally sourced, and only the freshest bread is used.

We were very intrigued and to be honest a little sceptical at the health aspects of it, so couldn't wait to get down to their Kilburn branch last weekend. There are a number of other branches across London (Ealing, Islington, Fulham, Ilford), and are also slowly branching out to other parts of the capital, and indeed the UK.

When we first stepped foot in the restaurant, we both saw similarities in terms of layout and feel to the Taco Bells we have been to in Sheffield, this being a good thing of course! Electronic boards displayed the menu options, the kitchen was in view and just behind that, with the tills in front. There was plenty of seating, but there is also the option to takeaway, or even order via Deliveroo and Uber Eats.

The store manager, Fahad, greeted us very warmly and treated us fantastically throughout. This being the other major factor which separates them from the average fast food brand. As we all know, service often severely lacks in the fast food sector, but although you do pay through it as the prices here are slightly higher than the usual, it is well worth it. It's almost blurring the lines between fast food, and relaxed restaurant.

Fahad recommended the signature dish which I, James opted for, and Jessica went for another recommendation of the Durum Doner Wrap. Both came with either fried or onion rings, and also additional sauces and ingredients are on offer.

First of all, I've never had any type of kebab before, so I can't benchmark it against the typical kebab offering, but regardless, I only have good things to say! The meat was as they said, succulent, and sauces and salad packed it out and made for a very filling lunch time meal.

I am quite a messy eater on a normal day, and as you can guess from the picture, it ended up all over the place, but the tray, tissues, and anti-bacterial hand wipe which came with it made everything okay in the end and saved me from embarrassment!

Their are clearly great initiatives they have to attract different types of people to the restaurant to. They have a 'Social Sundays' campaign which includes 4x kebabs, 2x fries and 4 drinks for £19.99, 2FOR1 Tuesdays, and meal deals at certain times in the day. We were already having talks about bringing a couple of friends down on a Sunday to make the most of the offer, or simply just coming back for ourselves and trying out more items on the menu.

We have to say, whilst it is the healthiest that is on offer, it's not as healthy as we thought in the build up to coming. This as you may guess from the pictures of fries, onion rings and side sauces. But it certainly is all high quality ingredients, and most of all, tasty and it was a very enjoyable lunch outing.

05/03/2017

Sweet French toast - slices of germagrain bread, dipped in a whisked egg with cinnamon and vanilla mix, served with fried banana - £8.50

It's our last day in Edinburgh, and we couldn't leave without a visit to The Caffeine Drip, which again I came across on the internet before we came. It's tucked away in the West End of the city, a small staircase leading down to a secret hideaway of fantastic breakfast and lunches.

It's a South African Cafe and Bakery, with all the traditional stuff, along with some less common dishes, which is perfectly proven by this post!

Out of all the coffees we've had whilst in Edinburgh, this ranks at the top in my opinion. For once, large actually meant large, and my latte was super smooth and creamy, whilst still being really hot. As much as we love specialty coffee, we often find ourselves having to ask for it be extra hot as there is a common belief that heating it much past luke warm takes away the taste. Yet here, they had it spot on!

Jessica's mocha also had the perfect ratio of coffee to chocolate and both went down perfectly with our breakfasts.

White chocolate mocha - £3.25, Cappucino - £3.10

I went for the full cooked breakfast, going for all the traditional extras, although there were many options which allowed you to build your own. As standard came three, yes three poached eggs, toast, and a sauce of your choice. Then the rest was down to you. There must have been 10-15 different extras to choose from, all at a supplement. Every aspect of it was delicious and it made for a perfect start to my Sunday!

Jessica went for the more alternative option of french toast with fried banana, which after having to finish it because she was so full, was also delicious! It would never have been something I would choose, but that might change from now on. Fried banana was again just one of the number of options to have on the french toast, but I couldn't imagine anything going much better. Jessica certainly made a good choice!

This fueled us for our final day in Edinburgh. We'll doubtless be back before long, and a good chance we'll be back to The Caffeine Drip too. It comes highly recommended.

04/03/2017

After a quick search of the best restaurants in the city, it didn't take long before I was booking a table for Forage & Chatter, an independent and locally run restaurant, nicely located in the West End of the city. I wanted to make Jessica's birthday dinner extra special and a highlight of our visit, and that I certainly did.

We were welcomed warmly, had our jackets taken for us, and seated in the corner of the main part of the restaurant. It is split into a few areas, one of the others being the conservatory, which later on was described to us by our waiter and owner, Cameron. It has a retractable roof for natural light in the day time, and since taking over the restaurant in late last year, this along with the rest of the restaurant has been completely improved and renovated.

It was clear from our quick chat with him that he was a serious businessman, with extremely high standards and an impressive background in food and hospitality. This was glowingly reflected in our experience here at Forage & Chatter.

There's a story behind the impeccable food we had here. Everything is 'foraged' locally, within a 25 mile radius of the restaurant. Each staff member had excellent knowledge of the produce that was on the menu, and even always volunteered to explain everything that you might have a question about.

South African style dough balls with pesto, and yoghurt butter with powdered mushroom

First of all, we decided to treat ourselves to a bottle of Pinot Grigio from the extensive wine list. I don't often opt for wine, but Cameron was more than happy to offer me a taste before we indulged in the bottle. It turned out to be light, fruity and perfect alongside our three course meal.

These delicious and fantastic looking dough balls unexpectedly arrived just after our drinks and were by far the best dough balls we've come across. The pesto and butter awoken the taste buds, leaving them crying out for more great food. They were in luck...

Mushroom Carpaccio, goats cheese, herbs - £8.50 - Jessica

Both starters were impeccable and beautifully presented, with strong flavours and unusual yet perfect combinations. In both dishes was the perfect balance of crunch and soft creaminess, and it only whet our appetites and excitement levels for the main courses.

BBQ Pork Shoulder, crispy squid, cauliflower, radish - £8.50 - James

The menu offers a limited selection, but it's one of those which you know has brilliance stamped over every dish. There were always a couple of vegetarian options for each course, and both meat and fish options too. We both were looking to have something a little different, and take advantage of the fresh and locally sourced meat and fish from the menu. Jessica opted for hake, which she'd never had at a restaurant before, and my steak dish included braised ox cheek, again another first for me.

My word, both were immaculate and deceptively filling. We really can't find anything to critique. A shared side of rosemary chips made a nice addition and turned out to be a great source of banter with our waiter. Jessica was adamant we would have to have one each as she is in no way going to share, but he made sure we knew the portion was by far enough for even us two. He was right - it's the little things that made the service speak volumes.

West Coast Hake, onion, courgette, dill, wild leek - £17.00 - Jessica

When I booked via Open Table I made a note to make an extra effort as it was Jessica's birthday. Without having to ask or be reminded, this plate arrived just before our dessert. Hilarious moment of the visit was when one waitress told Jessica to lick the plate to not waste the good chocolate! Of course she did, only for the one other table left in the restaurant to start giggling! We're still not quite sure if they believed that we'd been told to do it!

We took inspiration from the table next door to us and ordered exactly the same desserts as we overheard their rave reviews, particularly of the doughnuts. They were a great choice, again of fantastic presentation, and a perfect end to a perfect meal.

But that wasn't all, as an extra birthday treat we were given a glass of Tokaji dessert wine. In Cameron's days working in premium restaurants and bars in London, he told us of stories when he sold this at £440 per shot. More affordable versions of this are available - he didn't just give us about £2000 worth of alcohol! It was so sweet and mainly tasted of honey, a perfect compliment to both desserts, especially my alunga chocolate.

Sea Buckthorn, almond, doughnut, white chocolate - £6.00 - Jessica

Before we left we told Cameron that we were off to look for somewhere to grab another drink or two before heading back to our hotel. He recommended a place called Panda & Son's, which was only about 5 minutes walk away. It's a secret hideaway bar, only known mostly to locals. The front presents itself as a barbers shop, with prices in dollars. Go down the staircase and through the library looking door, and you are in one of Edinburgh's best bars. We stayed and had a drink and popcorn, and we're so glad we listened to the recommendation.

Alunga chocolate - £6.00 - James

Overall, it was the most complete night and dining experience. The food, service and atmosphere were all spot on. It's easy to see why the restaurant in its short existence has risen to the top of many best restaurant lists. It's certainly up there with the best we have ever been to.

Having had our whole trip to Edinburgh planned in terms of what we were doing, I had been given a voucher for scones and tea in the Royal Yacht Britannia's Royal Deck Tea Room. But of course we couldn't come and only have that, so treated ourselves to soup and sandwiches, all of which were delicious.

Carrot and coriander soup of the day - £5.55

We were seated right by the window, and although it was a seriously misty day and we couldn't see far, it did clear up towards the end. All of the staff were very welcoming and friendly throughout, in fact faultless. Much like every other aspect of our meal here.

The soup of the day was carrot and coriander, which was beautifully smooth, tasty, and piping hot - perfect. The smoked salmon sandwiches were divine and so fresh, but perhaps the best part of my platter were the smoked paprika potato wedges. So crispy on the outside, soft on the inside, a little spicy and perfectly complimented by the garlic mayonnaise. There's nothing more that I love than some good quality wedges or thick cut chips!

Fruit scone served with Britannia jam and clotted cream, and green tea

On to our complimentary tea and scones, and it was a fantastic end to what turned from being a light bite, to very filling lunch. Both the fruit and plain scone were soft but yet held together from the jam and cream. Jessica opted for the famous Edinburgh tea, because it didn't feel right to not give it a go, and I had a strange feeling to have a green tea. Again, the presentation and taste was impeccable.

Plain scone served with Britannia jam and clotted cream, and Famous Edinburgh pot of tea for one

If you wish to have a read about the rest of our visit to the Royal Yacht Britannia, you can head over to our travel blog here, and you can find your way around everything else we got up to there too.

If you do ever find yourself in Edinburgh and aboard the Royal Yacht, make sure you stop for lunch. It's simply great.

03/03/2017

After a long day of travelling and sightseeing, the number one thing that we wanted was some seriously good 'pub' food, and luckily, we had a table booked at The Scran & Scallie. It's far from a pub, in fact it is a beautiful almost fine dining restaurant, but the menu offered all of the classic British pub classics, but often with some very nice twists indeed.

Roasted chorizo potatoes - £4.50, Mashed potato - £4.00

We were gutted to hear when we were seated that their fryer was out of order, which meant that chips were off the menu. If the rest of the meal were anything to go by, they would have been outstanding, and there's nothing that I love more than some premium thick cut chips! But that was soon forgotten about, the roasted chorizo potatoes which we had instead were delicious.

The mains themselves were divine, each bite full of flavour and always a little something different which we were never sure quite what it was. It was certainly better than 99% of other fish and steak pies you'll find.

The Scran and Scallie steak pie - £16.50

It was certainly a potato overload with the fish pie, chorizo, and mash - not that Jessica minded, she loves potato anyway but especially today! The portions were more than generous but we had left just enough room to share a dessert, and we're very glad we did.

We are big fans of sticky toffee puddings that are bathed in sauce, so we couldn't hide our delight when this beauty landed on our table. On most days we would've easily managed one each, but after such filling main courses, we opted to share. It was the perfect ending to a perfect meal and we would highly recommend this place to anyone finding themselves in Edinburgh.